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Larry Herzog Jr.
All things EUPHONIUM! Guilded server
Simon, I only have personal experience with a few of the clones that are widely available in the US. I owned a Schiller Elite for seven years before I bought a 3-valve Besson New Standard last year. The Schiller horn served me well while I had it. I played a Wessex Dolce for about twenty minutes at their Chicago showroom, and it was a nice horn. I brought my Schiller with me to compare, and they didn't necessarily feel very different to play. I could tell there was a sound difference, but I didn't have an impartial listener to help me evaluate. For what it is worth I never thought my Schiller sounded bad. When I gave my Schiller to it's new owner, they played it for me and I thought they sounded good.
I had a section mate who played a Mack Brass compensating euphonium, and they also sounded good on it.
Plenty of people on this forum, though not all, have good experiences with the Wessex, you could look into whether they ship to Croatia. I think they do. The Schiller comes from a US retailer, Jim Laabs, that is not very well thought of in terms of customer service. They do have an option to get a quote for international shipping, so they might ship to Croatia.
I don't have any experience with Thomann, but I suspect that these days the stencil horns coming from reputable dealers are probably decent horns, as mine was.
In Europe, I would try to get a Wessex. They are somewhat unique with the Chinese clone operations. The have a much closer relationship with the factory, for one thing. They personally visit the factory and inspect all horns before they are shipped. They have also worked on custom mods with the factory. My most recently play-test of a Wessex Dolce was in May, and it still strikes me as a very nice horn in its price range.
Thomann, or any other retailer for that matter, can contract to have a clone made with their logo. But that doesn't mean they are "improving the breed" in any way. I prefer a company that is taking part in the relationship a bit more closely.
Dave Werden (ASCAP)
Euphonium Soloist, U.S. Coast Guard Band, retired
Adams Artist (Adams E3)
Alliance Mouthpiece (DC3)
YouTube: dwerden
Facebook: davewerden
Twitter: davewerden
Instagram: davewerdeneuphonium
so the seller answered me
the Besson has medium shank and the model is :""""The model is London-Paris-New York, a pre-made model
before the New-Standard.""
anyone knows something about that era bessons euphonium model? thx
i can go till 2k eur , but as Dave mention, to try Wessex Dolce ..... nothing on ebay europe yet
I do not have an answer for you about which model number the Besson horn you are looking at is. I can tell you that the "London-Paris-New York" that the seller responded to you with is a part of the brand stamp that Besson was having their horns labeled with at the time it was manufactured. I have seen several Besson horns with this as a part of the logo on them. Perhaps if you could get the seller to send you a picture of the horn's bell, focusing on any writing, that can help us to identify and date the horn a bit better. Just knowing what the writing says does not tell us much. But a picture of the logo may give some clues. There were a few different versions of the company logo that tended to be used at particular times and contexts.
- Sara
Baritone - 3 Valve, Compensating, JinBao JBBR1240
The e-bay listing provides the serial number 489846 which corresponds to a 1970 date and confirms this is a Besson New Standard which is a professional-level 3+1 compensating horn and pre-runner to Besson’s Sovereign line.
http://www.dwerden.com/forum/showthr...1#.Y1SUuCUpAWN
‘fsung
Senior Member
Besson 181
The 8-10 series was Besson's top-of-the-line during the 1950s-mid '70s, and was commonly referred to as the "New Standard" (although the "New Standard" designation dates back to at least the 1920s).
The model 181 the bell up 4-valve compensator. The 181 was renumbered as the 767 shortly after the changeover from Euro to large shank.’
I will agree whole-heartedly with Doug’s statement, “…was just the most lovely, natural playing horn I had ever experienced. I could make that thing sing!”
http://www.dwerden.com/forum/showthr...159#post156159
Last edited by Shinn; 10-22-2022 at 09:07 PM.
David Shinn
Peninsula Concert Band
Yorktown, Virginia
1971 Besson 181 ‘New Standard’ Euphonium (3+1 compensating) ~ Alliance DC3M
1971 Besson 176 ‘New Standard’ Euphonium (3 compensating) ~ Alliance DC3M
1979 Besson 755 'New Standard' Baritone (3 compensating) ~ Alliance DC5S
1894 Besson ‘Doublophone’ Euphonium (3 + 1 changeover) & Original Leather Case
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/davidshinn....ibextid=LQQJ4d
Peninsula Concert Band: https://www.peninsulaconcertband.org/